Essentially, this is a AU of Mirai-hen that focuses on Kirigiri and Kizakura, based around a what-if scenario relating to them that I thought of. I won't say what that 'what if' is here, though since I did pose the question in a post on my Tumblr a while ago, it isn't really a secret or anything...but yeah, I'll just leave you to discover how this unfolds, and to guess what the question may have been.
Anyway, though I mention this in the plot summary, I will point this out again: There is a MAJOR character death in this. And no, I won't tell you who it is. Read and find out ^^ Just...don't hate me for it, please.
Kouichi Kizakura had hoped that when Kyouko and her surviving classmates had been freed from Hope's Peak, that would be the hard part over.
He knew that one way or another, they'd be absorbed into the Future Foundation, and that because of that, she'd probably encounter some danger along the way. Depending on what division she was assigned to, it could even be a lot, given the state of the world.
But that was fine, that was okay. He could deal with that. It would be easier to keep his promise to Jin like this. It was fine. At least now the hardest part was over, or so he had thought.
How wrong he had been.
One thing, leading to another, and another, and now this. Another killing game, repeating recent history. Sighing, chin resting in his right hand as he leaned against the railing, he lifted up his other hand, stared at the bracelet.
Unclench your left fist.
A mundane action, a natural one, but here it could get him killed. Still, that would be fine, too. He didn't need two hands to swig from his flask. It would be easy to make sure that he didn't violate that forbidden action.
It wouldn't be easy to keep his promise anymore.
Not here, not now. He didn't know what her Forbidden Action was, and knew full well that she would never reveal it, let alone to him. But he'd seen a glimpse of her face, when she'd checked hers for the first time. A rare vivid burst of emotion, a punch to the gut. Whatever it was, her action was not mundane. It would not be so easy to protect her now.
But I have to. One way or another, I have to. I can't let her down, even if she doesn't remember me. I can't let Jin down.
He sighed, straightened, absently checked to see if the 76th Class would come running back this way, still tangled in that amusing petty grudge. But already, they'd ceased to be of importance. There were more significant things to think about.
"Well, I should really go find that girl then."
…
Kyouko Kirigiri was aware of the seconds, ticking down intensely in her head as she approached the body of Chisa Yukizome, and knelt down by her side to start her investigation. For a moment, she closed her eyes, brought Yukizome's face to mind, and respected what little memory she had of her.
Allow Makoto Naegi to live past the fourth time limit.
That was her Forbidden Action (oh, the specific cruelty of it). The second one had gone already, she could not waste time mourning. She had to complete the investigation, figure out the truth of this, and write down her observations, so that the people she'd be leaving behind would be able to bring justice to the two who had died already, whoever had the misfortune of being the third, and then her.
Because she would die. She did not want to die. Of course she did not want to die. Not like this, in such circumstances, not without seeking the truth of them.
But the choice had already been made for her. Perhaps it had always been made for her.
She was not going to try and sacrifice him for her own ends. Not again. She could not. It was that simple. So this was just how it had to be. Keep her action to herself, complete the investigation, write everything down for everyone else, and go to her death gracefully.
Still, I hope I get to see Naegi-kun again, before I go.
She sighed, and shifted her weight a little, and wrote something she had observed. Leaning in to Yukizome's body, she started to examine the stab wounds, and then noticed Mitarai watching her curiously. Coolly, she turned her gaze on him, and waited.
"U-uh." Mitarai flinched a little as he stuttered. "Do…do you have any ideas about who the attacker is?"
"It's best to not have preconceptions going into things like this. They can cloud judgement."
"Oh, I see." Mitarai shrunk back, and didn't say anything more.
Kyouko paid him little heed as she continued to look over Yukizome's body and make notes. She was tolerating him, because Tengan had sent him with her for safety, but that was it. Though she wondered what his story was. She wasn't sure she considered him a suspect yet, but there was something …
Just as she had gotten up, and was preparing to take a closer look at the scene in general, the double doors of the meeting room swung open, and Kizakura walked in, pocket flask in hand. When he extended a big beaming grin in her direction, she stared flatly at him.
"Kizakura-san!" Mitarai said, unnecessarily.
"Yo, Kirigiri-Chan, I figured you'd be here. Investigating?"
"Of course I am." She answered, barely managing from rolling her eyes. "What are you doing here?"
"Ah, you know, I figured it was the safest place to be, next to a detective."
"Right."
There wasn't anything she could say to that, really, so she mentally shoved him in the same tiny brain-space that Mitarai occupied, and just tried to get on with what she was doing, still aware of the seconds ticking away at her.
But now she was also aware of Kizakura's eyes on her. And she wondered what his story was, too (and why she feels like it would be her story, too).
…
He decided to needle her, as they left the room and headed towards the body of Great Gozu. Nothing serious, silly comments about detectives and the nature of them, things he remembered hearing from Jin in the past, other things he's heard before. Nothing that major, but something to get a reaction out of her. Anything.
Anything that would make his job easier (and hopefully pass the time, because God, as if trying to keep alive while waiting for rescue wasn't as excruciating as hell).
But there was nothing. She was as cool and as stoic as she had been when she'd first re-appeared on his radar as a Hope's Peak scout. Possibly more. And so she all did was ignore him, or shoot him the occasional annoyed look. She gave him nothing.
Give me something, Kyouko-Chan. Make this easier for me.
Of course, there was Mitarai, drifting around her weedily. Kizakura ignored him. Of course, much like he had suspicions about Gekkougohara, he had suspicions about the leader of the 10th Division. But he figured he could keep them down for now, unless they interfered with what he was hoping to achieve.
Harm her, and you'll regret it.
When they actually got to the body, he decided to ease off for now, and let Kyouko be, as she got to work almost straight away. When she had to pull away Gozu's mask in order to better examine his injuries-horrible, horrible injuries-he located a small sheet that she could cover his face out of respect, knowing full well that this was the kind of thing she'd want to do, and handed it to her.
A moment passed. She stared at him, then at the cloth. Something visceral flickered across her face, but she tamped it down with a similar intensity, and nodded at him in acknowledgement as she took it.
"Thank you."
Brisk, no-nonsense, and in the next breath, she had turned away from him, shutting him out once again. No matter though. This, at least, was something.
…
She checked her bangle, and noticing the time ticking down, she sighed, and got up, walking down an aisle.
"It's almost the time limit." She told her two companions. She looked around her, making sure that she was nowhere near the screen in the room, like Gozu had been. At this stage, she couldn't be 100% sure that the screens were related, but she had a strong suspicion that they were. So she decided to play it safe, and sat leaning against some shelving.
There is no point in dying before my time.
Kizakura and Mitarai followed her, the latter setting up opposite her, the former plonking himself down around the corner from her and swigging some more drink from his flask as he watched her. There was a part of her that wanted to ask him to go somewhere else.
But if that somewhere else ended up being next to the screen, and he died, she'd never forgive herself.
So instead, she angled herself away from him, subtly, and shut him out completely. Then, she decided to spend what minutes she had this time around writing up more of her findings. The more information that she could leave behind for Naegi, the better, after all.
…
As they drifted off to sleep, he didn't fail to notice Kyouko wistfully press her bangle and read the forbidden action scroll across it. Drowsy, and sitting at a right angle to her, he couldn't fully take advantage of this opportunity, but he did catch one word.
Honesty.
The word snagged at him, and he struggled to figure out a coherent action that involves the usage (or possibly lack of) honesty. But just as his attempts to get Kyouko to reveal something came up empty, his own tired mind gymnastics fail to yield anything useful. But then, in the moment that he finally lost a grip on his consciousness, it hit him.
Not the word honesty, but the name written that way.
Makoto.
Makoto Naegi.
…
"That's the third time limit."
She knew there was little use in saying this aloud, but she had to, anyway. To remind herself of the gravity of all of this. She flicked glances at Mitarai and Kizakura, and noted with relief that they were fine too.
"Ah, good, we're all alive for another round." Kizakura commented, looking to her for a reaction. She gave him none, busy thinking.
So, does that mean it's the screens? Who died this time, then? Please, not Naegi-kun. Please.
"So, where are we going to go next?" Mitarai asked her.
"We'll have to find whoever died, this time around." She said, not wanting to betray just how horrifying the prospect was.
"But how can we do that?"
"Wander around and hope for the best, right, Kirigiri-Chan?"
As that was ludicrous, she just shrugged and strode out of the room. She supposed that Mitarai had a point with his question. She'd been wondering the same thing. Everyone had divided up into their own groups, or were solo in other places. They could be anywhere.
But she knew that one of them would be dead. And she would find them, somehow…
"Are you following us?"
She turned to Kizakura, finally irritated by the way he kept hovering around her, with that idiotic grin and the smell of alcohol. She had no idea what he was doing, keeping so close to her. Certainly, it was nothing to do with safety at a detective's side. But it was definitely annoying, and she didn't much like it. As it happened, when she thought about it, she didn't much like him.
Uncle Kouichi, Uncle Kouichi!
As she glared daggers into Kizakura, the voice of her younger self appeared, an apparition, reminding her of a different time. Sunny day, a grassy park, laughter, strong arms, learning how to fly, a camera. She ignored it.
"No, no." Kizakura lifted his right hand and flapped it at her affably. "I just happened to be walking along in the same direction as you."
"Well then, I'm going this way."
Backtracking from the direction she had planned to take, she sharply turned right and kept walking, without looking back. Thankfully, he seemed to concede, and did not trail behind her. Petty though it was, she was relieved.
Of course, it was a short-lived relief, for a minute later, Kizakura came charging back down, indicating that she should follow him. She tried to ignore him, figuring this to be one of his annoying little games, like his taunts from the previous time limit, but he insisted, and she gave in.
And that was how she came upon the body of the third victim: Seiko Kimura.
…
Okay, so it was a little crass of him, given the circumstances, but he couldn't help but feel smug. Seeing Kyouko's contempt for him, turned on its head for a moment and transformed into surprise, it was funny.
Of course, it was short lived.
He stayed silent and out of the way for a while, as Kyouko worked on investigation Seiko's death. She muttered some things occasionally, but mostly kept silent. It seemed like she didn't want anyone to ask her anything, and so he didn't, for a while. Mitarai had the sense to stay silent, too, and it lent the air an eerie feel, amplified by the blood that mixed in with the water from the burst pipe.
Absently, he dug his pocket flask out and swung it in front of his eyes, looking at the engraving on the front of it, and then looking over at Kyouko, back and forth, back and forth.
"Jin."
"It's a girl. We've named her Kyouko."
"Ooh, that's a cute name, I like it."
"Your approval is so noted, Kouichi."
"Why, thank you. Pass my congrats on to her mother, won't you? So, when will I actually get to meet little Kyouko-Chan?"
"It should be fine for you to come tomorrow. I'm looking forward to having her meet her uncle."
"The years go so fast, don't they, Kyouko-Chan?" he muttered to himself, deciding not to drink anything for now as he shoved the flask away. Then, he noticed her looking at him, curiously. He wondered if she had heard her, and opened his mouth to say something, when she realised he'd noticed, and narrowed her eyes, before turning away. So he changed tack.
"Hey, Kirigiri-Chan, aren't you worried about Naegi-kun?"
She whipped back around to look at him, startled.
"He has Asahina-san and Gekkougohara-san with him, he isn't alone." She responded eventually. "In any case, I am sure his Luck will tide him over too. He's stronger than he seems."
It was more answer than he had been expecting, and though it was delivered in the same clipped manner she always had, it told him a lot.
"But don't you want to keep an eye on him, as his boss and all? Or even just as his friend?"
"What, exactly, does it matter to you?"
He was not prepared for what he saw in her eyes as she asked him this, each word ground out. Her face itself was still, but her eyes….again, he was taken back, really vividly to those distant times.
Kyouko, bawling as an infant. Kyouko, wailing because she'd scraped her knee. Kyouko, crying after a classmate at day-care had said something mean. Kyouko, upset at being told she was too little to understand certain things. Kyouko, frustrated at not being able to figure a mystery out herself. Kyouko, sobbing at her mother's funeral. Kyouko, afraid that her father would be next. Kyouko, withdrawing when in a way, her fears were founded. Kyouko, waveringly putting up the walls between her and everyone else. Kyouko, disappearing into her family's legacy, only to reappear years later.
Kyouko-Chan.
He laughed it off, dressed the question up as another silly joke, let her get her composure and block him out once again. He pretended that he hadn't just been pole-axed by the past, the memory of those days. But he didn't push it aside, either. Because it made it easier for him to quietly slip away, as Kyouko suddenly decided to engage Mitarai in the investigation process, and they became engrossed in examining some piece of evidence or other.
It made it so much easier to do what he had to do, to keep his promise.
…
Kyouko breathed out a sigh of relief, when Kizakura finally decided to leave her alone and go off, presumably to annoy someone else. Whatever weird reason he'd had for hanging around her had clearly stopped becoming relevant, and it couldn't have done so sooner. Now she could just get on with things in peace. Well, Mitarai was around, but him, she could handle. For now. Until she figured him out.
But don't you want to figure out Kizakura-san out, too?
She had a feeling that there was something more to why he had been there. He'd been staring at her a little too deeply, some of his questions had hit a little too close to home-why he had asked about Naegi, in that way, she couldn't figure out, and she was fairly sure she hadn't been able to hide the instinctual response to his name. She had seen him try to peek at her notebook, at her bangle. Not that he had succeeded.
And then, of course, there was her memory, foggy but insistent, calling out 'Uncle Kouichi', in the voice she remembered having as a child. It was not just her imagination, because earlier, she'd heard him mutter something ending with 'Kyouko-Chan'. A name that he didn't usually use to address her, not as far as she knew.
"Hey, Kirigiri-Chan, aren't you worried about Naegi-kun?"
She was. Which was why she sighed, and ignored it for now. Nothing would come of it. For now, the evidence stacked up that way. If there was time, she'd examine things later. But of course there wouldn't be any.
"Kirigiri-san, what's this?"
She turned, and looked at Mitarai, holding up something in his hand, looking quizzical. She made a motion, and he handed it over with trepidation. Carefully, she curled her hand around it, and looked at it.
And a new possibility started to take hold.
…
"We're separated!"
"It's fine, Asahina-san, keep going! I'll be fine!"
Truly, Naegi's optimism was a sight to behold. Kizakura shook his head in amazement at it, even as he had to keep dodging robot-Gekkougohara (he'd known something was fishy about her, he'd known it) and Sakakura, who were now entangled in battle. Even if the boy was the Ultimate Hope, and a former Lucky Student, his brightness was inexplicable.
Still, it serves me well here.
"But you…how are you going to get around?" Asahina called over the din that the robot and the Boxer were making.
"Ah, no worries about that." Kizakura decided now was the time to step in. "I'll take over carrying duties this time, if need be, until we can find a way to meet up again. Hopefully I won't need to though. No offence, Naegi-kun."
"It's fine…" Naegi laughed awkwardly, before turning back to Asahina, still hovering anxiously behind the robot, even as she had to keep stepping out of the way.
"Go find Kirigiri-san, if you can." Naegi asked her.
Yes, you do that.
"A-ah, sure! Kizakura-san, I'm counting on you!"
With that, Asahina was off, soon disappearing into the gloom of the other end of the corridor. Kizakura studied Naegi, who was watching his friend go off with some concern, and went through his plan again. Or, rather, his train of thought that could loosely be called a plan.
"We should probably sneak off too." Kizakura leaned forward to murmur in Naegi's ear. "While Sakakura-kun there is still…suitably distracted."
"A-ah, sure." Startled, Naegi blinked, and then took off as fast as he could without running. Kizakura loped behind him, all the time looking back over his shoulder, making sure that Sakakura didn't notice and come haring after them as the sounds of the fight gradually became less audible.
After a while, when he was satisfied they were far enough that it would still take Sakakura a while to find them, he sped up a little, overtaking Naegi, so that he had to follow him instead. Then, he took a route that he hoped would lead them as far away from Kyouko, Mitarai (and Asahina) as possible. Naegi struggled to catch up, fighting between taking time to catch his breath and trying to catch up without triggering his Forbidden Action, and Kizakura whistled random tunes to try and block it out.
I can't go feeling pity for you now, kid. Sorry.
"Ki-Kizakura-san! S-slow down, p-please!" Naegi eventually called out. Kizakura stopped, and spun around on his heel, and regarded Naegi. A long moment passed as he titled his head, but then he smiled. Slowly, carefully, betraying nothing.
"Sorry, sorry. Wasn't paying attention. You're less chatty than Kirigiri-Chan. "
"Kirigi-ohh, right." Naegi laughed hesitantly as he realised the joke. "You were with her before, then? I guess she's been investigating, hasn't she?"
"Yup, that's correct. She banished me though, for being too hilarious."
"Ah, well…"
Kizakura smirked as Naegi scrambled for an appropriate response.
"Eh, it's no issue. She's got to do what she's got to do, right? She's been making some progress. Wouldn't be surprised if she'd figured it all out by now."
"Yeah, I'm sure she would have. Kirigiri-san is really good at what she does. She'll definitely find answers and justice for the dead."
There was conviction in Naegi's eyes and face as he said this. Not unusual, in itself. This was Naegi, after all. But still, there was a note of something else beyond that. Something deeper, that made him think that if Naegi hadn't been a threat to Kyouko's life, he'd genuinely be trying to reunite them, just to see her happy, to see the smile he hadn't seen in so many years.
Assuming that she still even smiled like that, of course.
"Hey, Kizakura-san, do you think that Kirigiri-san will be alright, on her own?" Naegi ventured after a moment of silence.
"Oh, she's not on her own. Mitarai-kun is with her. Not to mention the fact that you sent Asahina-san to her just now, did you not?"
"A-ah!" Naegi lit up as he remembered that. "That's true. That'll be fine then. I just…"
"Hmm?"
"Oh! Nothing! It's fine, it's fine!"
And with that, they returned to walking in silence. Kizakura wondered at that sudden turn in Naegi's tone. He seemed to be hiding something, something that weighed him down, worried him. If it was relevant or not, there was no way to know. Still, in the end, it probably would not matter. Not after what he was thinking of trying to do.
Ah, I need a drink.
He took out his flask again, and unscrewed the lid, taking a long swig and breathing deeply in bliss as the drink coursed through him. He needed the courage.
"Erm, Kizakura-san?"
"What is it, Naegi-kun, do you want some?"
"No thanks. But….where are we going, exactly? Is this even the right way?"
"Oh, it's the perfect way."
"But, we're coming up to a dead-end."
"Exactly. That's why it's the perfect place."
For me to kill you, here and now.
…
The bottle in her pocket felt like it was burning a hole there. Why had she taken it? Who was to say that it would do what she assumed to do? Sure, based on logic, what she knew of Kimura's skills, and her knowledge of the English language, the conclusion she had come to was reasonable. Of that, Kyouko had no doubt.
But who was to say that she was correct?
Who is to say that I should be correct?
Perhaps it would be better to properly be a sacrifice. Perhaps her time was truly up, and she should just accept it. She could join her father, find out for sure if she had forgiven him in the time that had been stolen from her memory. Before the bottle, this was what she had been preparing for. It would not be so bad.
I still do not want to die.
"Where are we going now, Kirigiri-san?" Mitarai asked, jolting her out of her thoughts. She frowned at him.
"To find Naegi-kun, of course."
"B-but why? Do we even need him?" Kyouko raised an eyebrow at Mitarai's scepticism.
Wasn't he idolising Naegi-kun, earlier.
"What do you mean?"
"Well….sure he's Hope and all that, but he's just ordinary. And he isn't really all that strong, is he? How will he help?"
Now this was something she needed to set straight.
"That's not entirely true. To be fair, he is very much, as you say, ordinary. But…"
Kyouko allowed a smile to steal across her lips, mentally went somewhere far away, as she pulled up everything that she valued about Naegi, as friend and classmate (and possibly more, if she didn't know that she was due to die). All the reasons that she considered him her personal hope, and not just the Ultimate Hope. All the reasons that she had chosen to just give up her life for him, even though she badly wanted to live too.
Of course, she didn't mention her inevitable demise.
Still, she hoped that her words got across, changed Mitarai's mind. Not just so he understood things better, so that he could be someone who'd support Naegi, when she was gone. Because it would devastate him. It was not as if she was ignorant of that.
When she had finished, she looked to Mitarai, to see what he made of what she had said. He looked more than a little bowled over, which made Kyouko wonder if perhaps she should have dialled it back a notch. But more concerning to her was the fact that he seemed not to be looking at her, but a point over her shoulder. So carefully, she turned around.
And saw Asahina standing there alone, grinning cheerfully at her.
…
"K-kill me? I-I don't understand."
Naegi's eyes were wide with fear as he backed away, making things worse for himself as he approached the wall of the dead end. Kizakura kept walking, forcing him into that corner, keeping his expression grim. The time for jokes and taunts were over.
"You don't need to. There isn't time for that." He said in a low tone.
"I don't…Kizakura-san, I thought that you didn't think that I was despair. I thoug-"Naegi was cut off as he abruptly backed into the wall, wincing with the pain. He rubbed the back of his head and looked up at Kizakura.
"Oh, all that's true. But you're still dangerous." Kizakura answered. "And there isn't any time for this."
I just hope that your Luck doesn't kick in here.
Once again, the flask went back in its usual pocket, and then, keeping as close to Naegi as possible so that he didn't attempt to get away, he dug around in his other pockets, until he found what he was looking for. A knife.
He was no great shakes with weaponry, really. Sure, he'd handled firearms before, particularly when trying to break Kyouko out of the school. And he knew a thing or two about hand-to-hand combat, and handling knives like the one he had now. But usually he would leave that type of fighting to the likes of Sakakura or Munakata or Izayoi, or any of the vastly more skilled subordinates in the different divisions.
Still, he carried a weapon, just in case. And now that 'just in case' had come.
"Y-y-you're se-serious, aren't you? You-"
Naegi stared for a moment, then took a deep breath, and attempted to push Kizakura away. He was quicker though, swiftly pushing him back against the wall with his left arm-the best he could do, considering his own Forbidden Action. Naegi gasped, and gritted his teeth, closing his eyes for a moment. Kizakura kept his arm there, and then used the other to raise the knife, and placed it against Naegi's throat.
(If Naegi had actually been despair, or a proper traitor, Kizakura might have taken a moment and boasted about how alcohol clearly did not dull his reactions.)
"P-please explain." Naegi somehow managed to stammer, trembling all over, gulping as he looked at the blade against his throat. "I-Isn't there time to explain, at least?"
"No. I need to do this before the fourth time limit hits."
Which of course was a sort of explanation. But not the full one. Still, it seemed like Naegi seemed to understand almost immediately.
"If I don't die, then something happens? Could it be…your Forbidden Action? Is that why?"
"Halfway there, not quite." Kizakura said glibly, pressing the knife a little deeper, causing a drop of blood to swell up. "Try again, Naegi-kun."
"Okay….okay…..not yours…so, someone else's. Someone else's…." Naegi's voice dipped at this point, and Kizakura had to concentrate to hear what he was saying.
"If me being alive means someone else's Forbidden Action goes off, then….that…that counts as…..it being my fau….could it be?"
Naegi gasped loudly all of a sudden, startling Kizakura and almost making him lose his hold. Quickly, he regained it.
Don't let go, goddammit. You can't fail now. You have a promise to keep!
"Kirigiri-san or Asahina-san? They're the only other ones trapped here who survived our class's killing game, so if Monaka did mean a Forbidden Action, then that rules out Fukawa-san, Togami-kun and Hagakure-kun so…..it's one of them."
Kizakura didn't have a clue what Naegi was going on about, but it didn't really matter. He sighed. He supposed there was no hiding it. There was a brain under all that mundanity, after all. There would be no point. That, and it was the end of the line either way.
"Kirigiri-Chan. No," he corrected himself. "Kyouko-Chan. Kyouko-Chan's Forbidden Action."
He stated this with conviction. But he didn't know for sure. What he did know amounted to a glimpse of the words 'Makoto' and 'live' on Kyouko's bracelet, the reactions she'd had to him needling her about Naegi, how she kept mentioning what time limit they had passed, and how determined she was in investigating and writing everything down.
But it made sense. If it had been the third, second or first, his promise would have been broken before he'd even had a chance to do anything. It could possibly be the fifth, or the sixth, but if that had been the case, then her pace might have been more measured. Plus, given that this was a killing game, that would have been a much less exciting deadline. And so that left the fourth time limit.
If Kyouko Kirigiri let Makoto Naegi live past the fourth limit, then she would die.
And he knew full well that she was going to let him live. He was not blind or deaf. He knew how close they were. Close enough that, though he had joked to Jin about marrying her once, in truth he now imagined giving her away at the wedding in Jin's stead. Not that they were anywhere near that stage yet, but still.
An old uncle could dream, couldn't he?
Not any more though. Not anymore. I'm sorry, Kyouko-Chan.
"Y-you're sure." Naegi looked utterly floored by that. "It would definitely be…..Kirigiri-san would…."
Kizakura nodded once.
"So you understand, don't you? Why this has to be?"
He had to wonder why Naegi wasn't questioning him, what he had said. How easily he had accepted this. Perhaps it had something to do with what he had been rambling on about.
"T-there's…there's no other way? No other way that we could get past this? I mean…why Kirigiri-san, why? Of anyone, why did it need to be….?"
Naegi took a shuddering breath, and tears started to form in the corners of his eyes. Kizakura's knife hand started to shake, but he held it there, let a few more drops of blood well up, become a thin trickle.
"I don't want any of them to die but, of all…..why Kirigiri-san? Why is her forbidden action….Kizakura-san, there really is no other way?"
"If there was another way, don't you think we'd all be free from these by now?"
"I need….I need to see her, to…."
"No." Kizakura snapped. "No. There is no time. And she doesn't need to see this. No."
"But….but…." Naegi whimpered, and the tears escaped his eyes, as he sniffled silently. Then, he gulped, and visibly pulled himself together.
"Let me then."
"Huh?"
"Let…let me. You know." Naegi looked down at the knife at his throat with some trepidation. Kizakura let out a hard laugh.
"Really now, you expect me to believe that you're actually fine with killing yourself?"
"You'll have blood on your hands if you do it!"
"If I cared about that, I wouldn't be here now."
"Still!" Naegi cried. "I want to…..Kirigiri-san showed she was willing to give her life for me by staying silent, right? So, let me show that I'd do the same for her…..if that's the last thing…."
"Never thought I'd see the day. Makoto Naegi, giving up and dying."
"No! This isn't giving up! This is saving a life of someone important to me." Naegi disagreed. "And if there's no other way left, then I'm fine with that! "
Kizakura blinked, but Naegi wasn't finished.
"In any case, you already decided for me, telling me the truth. What else would you expect me to do with that knowledge?!"
Naegi managed to smile at this, a grim expression as he stared Kizakura straight in the eyes, daring him to deny what he had said.
Well, I suppose that makes things easier for me, doesn't it?
"Don't make me regret this. And hurry up."
Time is ticking.
Kizakura stepped back, let his left arm fall back to his side again, and held out the knife to Naegi, tapping his foot impatiently. Naegi touched his throat, held his fingers up to his eyes and looked at the blood there, and sighed, murmuring something that Kizakura couldn't hear. Then, he grabbed it, and held it to his chest, the tip of the blade brushing his slightly askew tie. He closed his eyes, took a few deep breaths in, and his hands trembled faintly. Kizakura held his own breath as he waited.
And then, finally, swiftly, Naegi used both of his hands and drove the knife straight into his heart.
It was not dramatic. Blood did not spurt everywhere. Instead, it bloomed, a rose growing bigger and bigger of its own volition, staining his shirt and tie rapidly. Almost instantly, Naegi's legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground in a heap as he lost his grip on the knife. His eyes remained closed, and he did not make a sound except for one surprised breath at the moment of impact. But a small, almost imperceptible smile did steal across his face before he finally died.
And Kizakura stood there, impassive, hands in his pockets.
He waited, looking down at the pitiful body of the boy who had once taken down Junko Enoshima, who had once been Ultimate Luck and who had ended up the Ultimate Hope. He waited until the blood stain stopped expanding, and he sighed, rolling his shoulders and looking up at the ceiling, seeing nothing.
Who knew, huh? That it would be this easy?
He hadn't thought that it would be so. He'd expected to have to fight harder, to possibly have been killed himself. That Kyouko would end up as Naegi's one and only Achilles' heel, that he'd barely have to do anything himself? It was almost laughable.
Then again, she was his too, just in a different way.
But still, you killed him. And now you have to face that.
The cold voice was unwelcome, and Kizakura mock-pouted at that, before he sighed. This much was true, after all. Shaking his head, he knelt down, and gingerly, making sure no blood got on his own clothes, he rolled Naegi over so that he was at least lying on his back, and then took off his blazer and threw it over his face. As an afterthought, Kizakura folded Naegi's arms over his chest, then rearranged his blazer slightly so that it didn't get tangled up.
Then, he sat down next to the body, found his flask again, and waited for the fourth time limit to come.
…
Something is wrong.
Slowly, Kyouko stretched, letting out a yawn as she sat up, rubbing her eyes. Her head still felt a little heavy, thick almost. But there was something in there, screaming for her attention. But she couldn't see it through the fog, despite knowing that it was important. Concentrating, she looked down at her lap, trying to focus and remember what she could.
She had been with Mitarai, singing Naegi's praises, when Asahina had caught up to them. They'd retired to a room and somehow managed to find some tins of food, and they'd had a little picnic of sorts while Asahina caught them up on what had led her to them, from the revelation that Gekkougohara was a robot to the fact that Togami was now aware of their situation and sending help, all the way to the skirmish with Sakakura that had separated Naegi and Asahina.
As the time ticked down, Kyouko had snuck one of the pills found on Kimura's body with some of the food she had eaten, then had added a few final notes to her notebook before making sure it was in a place that was safe, but also one that would still be accessible after her death. And then they'd all fallen asleep, one by one. And now she was awake.
What am I missing? What is the problem?
She looked up and around her, wondering just how much time had passed. Then, she noticed Mitarai and Asahina opposite her, still asleep. As she stared at them, stunned, they both began to stir, Asahina sitting up and yawning loudly, while Mitarai was stiller, his eyelids fluttering slowly.
No, wait…why are they….? Does this mean…it didn't work, it's the…?
As she watched them wake up, it hit her. The problem was the fact that she was sitting here, trying to figure out what the problem was.
In other words, the fact she was alive.
If I'm alive, and the fourth time limit has gone, that means….
"Oh, hey, we're all awake! That's great!" Asahina declared.
"Y-yeah." Mitarai agreed hesitantly. "Oh, Kirigiri-san, are you alright?"
It can't be….
Kyouko got up unsteadily, taking in deep breaths, holding out her hands in front of her. She was awake, when she shouldn't have been. She was alive.
"Huh? Kyouko-Chan, what's wro-eh? Where are you going?! Wait for us! "
No.
Kyouko barely heard them, for just like that, as the realisation slammed into her again and again (no, it couldn't be, please, couldn't she be wrong just this once?), she ran out of the room.
…
Kizakura smiled as she approached them, out of breath, her gait a little clumsier than it usually was. This was it, he supposed. Whatever happened would happen. He'd succeeded. It was fine.
As she skidded to a halt in front of him, Kizakura's smile faded a bit as he noticed Munakata striding behind her. There was something dark and foreboding about him, and he kept his composure, but that was instantly lost when he saw what was in front of him.
"What is the meaning of this?" Munakata boomed. Kizakura noticed that the sword he was holding looked like it had been used on someone.
I wonder who…..?
He shrugged. He didn't really care, though he might have once. So he looked Munakata straight in the eye and told him.
"Why, I killed Naegi-kun, of course."
"You-you did what?" Munakata blinked, and then looked over to where Naegi's body was. Kyouko was already there, kneeling by his side, her head bowed. She remained utterly still. Kizakura watched as Munakata's eyes widened.
"So, does this mean you're the attacker?" Munakata demanded. Kizakura just grinned at him, which enraged him.
"Answer me!" Munakata held up his sword, and held it in front of him, aiming at Kizakura.
"Well, sure." Kizakura shrugged. "I'm the attacker. Of Naegi-kun. But I take it you mean am I the attacker of this game? In which case, I hate to disappoint you, but no, I'm not."
"Don't lie, Despair!"
"I'm not, I'm not! Seriously, would I lie to you about this?!"
"You have every reason to lie about this, Despair! But you're going to be slayed anyway, so it would be better in the long run if you dropped the pretences an-"
"He's not lying."
Both men turned to look at Kirigiri. She didn't look up, instead having lifted a corner of the jacket up to look at Naegi's face. Her own was still obscured, from this angle, but to Kizakura the air suddenly became thicker, and he had to take in a deep breath.
Kyouko-Chan….
"He's not lying. This is a separate work." Kyouko's voice was toneless, even more so than usual.
"There are major differences between this case and the rest. Most notably the location, but there are other factors that support this."
"Is that so?" Munakata still held his sword in front of him, ready to strike down Kizakura. "Well, no matter. If you managed to kill Naegi, then you must be a stronger Despair than I'd imagined. How long have you been hiding amongst us for?"
"Oh, geez." Kizakura rolled his eyes. "Do you really think that every misfortune in the world is because of despair?"
"In case you haven't noticed, the current state of the world is because of despair! This very game, in fact! And so despair must be eradicated!"
"If you aren't a Despair, then why?"
Once again, both men looked over at Kirigiri. She'd re-covered Naegi's face, but she hadn't appeared to have started any deeper investigation. Instead, she had just stood up, still looking down. In one hand, she held her trusty notebook, but the other was balled into an angry, trembling fist.
"Why did you kill Naegi-kun?"
Kizakura sighed, deeply.
"For you, Kirigiri-Chan. To prevent your Forbidden Action from going off."
Wild eyed and astonished, Kyouko looked up. Her mouth fell open, but she quickly shut it again, and actively pulled herself together.
"You don't know my Forbidden Action."
"You're right, I don't. But I could figure it out. Allow Makoto Naegi to live past the fourth time limit."
Kyouko sucked in a breath, and a hand went to her bracelet, covering it, letting her notebook drop to the ground. She did not seem to notice it, though, as she kept her gaze fixed on him.
"So, you had one like that, did you?" Munakata diverted her attention for a moment, and she narrowed her eyes at him, before she sighed, and gave a heavy shrug.
"Yes. Kizakura-san is correct. But….nobody was meant to know. Nobody."
So why did you?
The glare that she shot at him conveyed the question so clearly, that he could not help but laugh. When this made them both shoot him vicious looks, he shook his head in surrender.
"Kirigiri-Chan, Kirigiri-Chan, you might have grown up all ice-like, but I still know you well. It was easy to read it off you."
Easier than I'd expected.
"And that was enough to drive you into despair?" Munakata asked him. Kizakura groaned.
"How many times do I need to say it? I'm not infected. I never was. Not everything is despair."
"Then what?" The tip of the blade came a little closer to his face. Kizakura gulped, and supposed he was feeling what Naegi had felt earlier.
"Oh, many, many things. But I got what I wanted, anyway. "And with that, he looked meaningfully at Kyouko, expecting her to say something to confirm this-for surely she had to have figured it out, by now. But instead, she just stood there, and looked at him.
Oh, goddammit. Goddammit.
"Did….did Naegi-kun know?" the words came out strangled, barely a whisper. Kizakura hesitated.
"Did he?"
"Yes." Defeated, Kizakura nodded. "He did. I told him. "
"I…I see…." Kyouko sighed, rolled her shoulders, looked up at the ceiling, and then back at Naegi, before she met his eyes again. She did not scream, or cry, or yell. But she looked utterly devastated.
"I see." She repeated, still exaggeratedly flat, still strangled and whispery.
"Enough of this!" Munakata lifted his sword up again, and prepared to bring it swinging down, but Kizakura fixed him with a dark look.
"No. Let me."
He thought of Naegi's last protest, as he took one last look at Kyouko. He had not been fully prepared for the look on her face, when she discovered what he had done. He wondered if he deserved this, the chance to go out on his own terms, when looking at her like this. He'd never, ever seen her quite like this.
Not in all the years he had known her.
But he had seen Kyouko, a grinning toddler, taking her earliest wobbling steps towards him. Kyouko, giggling side-splittingly at a joke he had told her. Kyouko, squealing in glee as Jin lifted her up in the air as if she was flying. Kyouko, beaming when she described how she'd figured out the answer to a puzzle in precise detail. Kyouko, smiling shyly as she presented him with a birthday card she'd drawn herself. Kyouko, smiling for the camera on her first day of school. Kyouko, lighting up at the very sight of him, her mother, Jin. Kyouko, relaxed with classmates, especially Naegi. Kyouko, happy.
That was the reason he had done this, all of this. She was the reason. So that perhaps she could be like that again. He had to. She couldn't have a chance to be happy if she was just intending to die.
But he should have known that this was the very thing that would have had the opposite effect.
But I had a promise to keep.
What else could I have done?
"Stop. Let me."
The command was forceful enough that Munakata did indeed stop, and let his sword-holding hand fall back to his side. He didn't relax though, instead getting ready to pounce if need be. Kizakura smiled at that, but quickly became serious.
"I'm sorry, Kyouko-Chan. "
It was useless, a lame apology. But it was all he could say, really. So he turned away, without waiting to see what she'd say, or what look she'd give him. He raised his left hand in the air, and took in a deep breath. Now, of all times, he needed a drink. But he wouldn't make this any longer than need be, make it any harder.
Look at this. I suppose it was easy to keep my promise to you here, Jin.
And so carefully, he uncurled each finger of his left hand, one by one.
…
Kyouko didn't understand what Kizakura was doing with his left hand, until the familiar chimes of the bracelet rang out, and one side of Kizakura's body started to tighten and turn purple, veins becoming more prominent. His Forbidden Action scrolled across the bracelet insistently as his life ebbed away and his hands dropped to his sides, his head lolling slightly to the side, eyes closing peacefully. As he died.
Unclench your left fist.
She wished that she'd had a forbidden action like that, something so easy and ordinary.
Then none of this would ever have happened.
"I…I don't understand."
She didn't scream, or cry, or weep. But she was rooted to the spot. How had this happened? How?
"I take it then, that you intended to simply let yourself die, for Naegi's sake?" Munakata asked.
Kyouko startled, and looked at him. She decided not to mention the possibility the pills might have offered (after all, now she would never know if they would have worked), but was still stuck on how to answer.
"Wouldn't you have done the same? For Yukizome-san, for instance?" she managed.
Munakata flinched visibly at that, but he did not answer. He simply looked from Naegi's body, to Kizakura's and back again, before shrugging off his torn blazer, and handing it to her. She gawped at it, reminded of when she had been investigating Gozu, but she took it, numbly.
She held it over Kizakura's head, and was about to cover him with it, when she noticed the pocket flask he always had, now on the ground. Something about it made her bend down, and pick it up to examine it. And her breath was taken away, as her eyes made sense of the engravings.
Her first name, and her birthdate, precise down to the time of day.
Uncle Kouichi, Uncle Kouichi!
The memory-of a different, long ago time (possibly even a happier, simpler time?)- in her head was louder now, and this time she didn't push it aside. Because this time, now, finally, she understood what it meant, it all too well. He had made the ultimate sacrifice, just for her.
"No…."
Unsteadily, she got up again, dropping the blazer over Kizakura's head with little regard, and went back over to Naegi, dropping to her knees by his side again. Taking off her glove, she reached under the blazer that Naegi was covered with, and felt for his hand, ignoring the feel of the blood.
Oh, Naegi-kun. This wasn't supposed to happen.
He'd made the ultimate sacrifice, too. He'd chosen to die, for her sake. That was what she was supposed to do. That was what she had thought, right from the start, from the moment she'd seen just how specifically cruel fate could be to her. She'd thought that she was going to die, and she had been fine with that, because she knew the choice had been made for her already. But she had been wrong.
Or maybe she had been right. Perhaps the choice had been made for her right from the start. She'd just been wrong about what the choice had been.
Or where the start point had been.
No. No, I don't want this.
"Pass me my notebook, please, Munakata-san." Kyouko cleared her throat as she returned her attention to her surroundings in general. As she removed her hand from Naegi's, and pulled her glove back on, Munakata raised an eyebrow at her, but complied, bending down to pick it up, and then holding it out.
"You're making a record of their deaths."
"Investigation. An investigation." She corrected as she took the notebook.
"But you already know what happened."
Kyouko glared at him.
"Does that mean they deserve any less justice than the victims of the attacker? In any case, it is best to be sure of everything. "
Munakata tipped his head to the side, then surprised her, by stepping back a few paces and then sitting down heavily.
"Then I will wait." He sounded defeated. "For your answers. To know if I was right or not."
Kyouko studied him for a moment. Questions flared up in her mind, but they could wait, just like Munakata had decided to wait. Instead, she gave herself a moment, to close her eyes and pay her respects. To push back her tears, until she was somewhere alone. She had all the (unexpected) time in the world now, so she gave herself that moment.
And then, she had no other choice but to get on with it.
Well...this felt a little OOC in places, and I can't write action to save my life. But yeah, here we are. I hope you liked/enjoyed this anyway.
I am planning on writing a sequel to this, which will be an aftermath sort of thing, though there will be some in-game scenes too, that take place after the point I ended this story. It will be published as a separate one-shot, but it has no title yet. But yes, that's going to be a thing. If you liked this, look forward to that. And in the meantime, as always, feedback is always appreciated!